LONDON, May 2. /TASS/. Typhoon fighter jets of the United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force (RAF) took off from a military base in Scotland on April 30 to intercept Russia’s Tu-142 maritime patrol aircraft in the international airspace above the Norwegian Sea, the RAF press service said on Tuesday.

"Royal Air Force Lossiemouth based Typhoon fighters were scrambled to intercept a Russian military aircraft near UK airspace on Sunday," the press service said in a statement. "At no point did the Russian aircraft enter UK sovereign airspace and Norwegian F-35A fighter aircraft were also launched as part of NATO’s response to monitor the Russian aircraft."

The Russian Embassy in London has on several occasions pointed out that the numerous sorties of UK aircraft used to intercept Russian planes operating in international airspace were an unjustified waste of resources. Besides, they create additional risks for civilian air traffic, the Russian diplomats added.